


Consequences

by darkling59



Series: Annals of the Incomplete [51]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Angst, Post-Reichenbach
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-16
Updated: 2015-03-16
Packaged: 2018-03-18 01:29:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3551015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkling59/pseuds/darkling59
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John Watson's role in the life of Lestrade's Yarders, pre- and post-Reichenbach.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Consequences

No one really knows where John Watson came from...he was just _there_ one day, following Sherlock onto a crime scene. They all assumed it was simply another one of Sherlock’s experiments (see how long the normal bloke can keep up…that sort of thing).

…Except he came to the next crime scene as well, and the next, and the _next,_ until it became strange _not_ to see him at the consulting detective’s side.

And, miracle of miracles, the longer John was with Sherlock, the more human Sherlock seemed. Before, he’d been a sociopath barely keeping himself on the right side of the law, with no interest or regard for other humans. After, and this was the most shocking thing, he actually _tried_ to avoid being offensive to other people _._ Not always, and not always successfully, but the effort was there.

Sherlock Holmes went from the bane of their unit’s existence to a sort of mascot, an ornery but amusing show starring John and Sherlock.

(That’s not to say he became friendly…he could still reduce Anderson to tears within five minutes)

John’s blog helped with that, actually. The fact that Sherlock had a human connection, dare it be suggested, a _friend_ made him less menacing for some reason, especially since the friend was such a normal guy.

It took a ridiculous amount of time for the unit to realize that John Watson was in no way _normal_ despite his appearance, but even still he paled in comparison to Sherlock.

The two became inseparable to the point where people began to wonder whether they were ‘just friends’ or something more (of course, some people thought they were ‘something more’ right away). No one was ever able to figure out what made them so… _right._ They were somewhere between best friends and a married couple, with overlaps in very strange places. Every new challenge only seemed to bring them closer, even Moriarty’s games couldn’t tear them apart.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, came the deathblow.

Donovan and Anderson had always doubted Sherlock’s abilities…out of jealousy, spite, lack of proof, or just plain dislike…so much so that they jumped at the first sign of fraud. So much so, that they took Moriarty’s word over Sherlock’s, and condemned the consulting detective for something he hadn’t done.

No one really understood what had happened until after the fact. Those last days went so quickly…no one actually believed it at first when the call came in that he had _jumped._ There were disbelieving looks and fact checks, progressing from scoffs of disbelief to frantic horror.

It took days for the fact to really sink in.

And then, to make matters worse, files and folders began to appear at the office. No one knew who delivered them, only that they came from the Home Office, and that they explained in detail what Moriarty had done.

And what Sherlock had _not_ done.

Sherlock had been innocent. Soon after his death, his name had been cleared of all charges.

The entire unit locked down in horrified disbelief. No one was spared the guilt. Even those who hadn’t liked Sherlock mourned his loss.

It wasn’t long before someone remembered John Watson but it was over a week before anyone worked up the nerve to try to talk to him. Lestrade was the first- he didn’t know what to do but knew he had to explain, apologize, or _something._

John wasn’t there.

Lestrade looked around, at Baker Street, Barts, the pub, Angelos…and found nothing. Mrs. Hudson said the flat was paid out but John hadn’t been back in days. Greg ran a search and came up empty. After 48 hours, he reported John as missing, hoping it would draw him forward.

John Watson vanished from the Yarders’ lives as quietly and unobtrusively as he’d appeared and, somehow, that made them feel even worse.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written before the most recent series premiered.


End file.
